Re-education

Of our 2 dogs- both of which are terrier mixes (as best we can tell)- Piper is definitely our needy child. They are both VERY interested in being with us as much as possible, (which is apparently a very terrier trait no one told me about) but Odie can and will occasionally wander off on his own. Piper on the other hand can only be convinced to spend time on her own if she KNOWS we're not going anywhere or doing anything interesting. By interesting I mean moving from one room to the other, or opening a kitchen cabinet.

The other day I got off of work a little early and was able to head home to let the dogs out before dark, and hang out with them in the yard. They had been cooped up for about 7+ hours at this point, I would think the FIRST thing they'd do would be bolt outside to use the facilities. Well, they did head outside after a couple minutes of following me around, and determining I wasn't going to take them on a walk. We all headed outside, and Odie started stalking around, doing what dogs do- protecting the border, establishing no intruders of the squirrel or bird variety had crossed the line.

Piper on the other hand would NOT leave my side. In fact, when I sat down, she draped herself across me and stayed there for about 15- 20 minutes. I decided to take a picture of her/ us.

Who waits 20 minutes to pee? I mean, come ON, just get things done here little girl!

She's a very sweet kid, but I'm starting to realize something about her- She's THAT kid.

Everyone had a kid in elementary school that was nice enough but totally socially inept. They were a kid would was obsessed with medieval military, or had some weird thing about wearing the same mismatched socks every day. They had some friends, but not many, and all of them were a slight bit odd. The rest of the class thought the kid was ooookkkay, but just hard to talk to. That kid usually had a strange bond to their mom, and occasionally also starred as the "smelly kid".

So, thats my dog. The weird kid.

She definitely has a STRONG attachment to her mama, and doesn't totally know how to play with the other kids. She has her one special friend that gets her, and digs her program, but everyone else seems to not mesh with her style. Her style is clunky and awkward at best, but still, no one seems to know what to do with her. I don't blame them, even as a loving mama there are days I look at her and go "why do you have to be SO HARD on everyone? can't you just play like the other dogs?"

The one moment of peace I can find is knowing that most of those awkward kids in school grew up to be lawyers and rocket scientists and doctors. They used their quirks to become something great.

Now, I realize I'm talking about a dog here, so chances are she's never going to make anyone live a better life, or fly to the moon (although, really, do we know for sure?) but maybe, just maybe, she can figure out a way to be something really groovy with our help. Maybe in a few years she'll end up being a great therapy dog, or agility dog, or just a dog that can play with other dogs without starting a fight...... A girl can dream.

In the meantime, I'll accept her devotion, and try to work on her training- which will only help us both get through this awkward time. I'll try to take a deep breath and hope for the best every time we have a new experience instead of feeling a sense of dread and doom. I'll pay the extra money to get our trainer to keep working with us and her on getting these basics of life under control. I will probably not do any of these things in a picture perfect way, but I will try. 'Cause I want my kid to end up a lawyer, not a medical testing test dummy.